By Rob Ficiur

For the last week my home has been infected with Olympicitis.  (Do you think I can phone in and tell my boss I can’t work because of this infection?).  This column isn’t about the scores, you can get those anywhere and everywhere, this is my reflections and reactions to what happened on week #1 in Vancouver.
-The death of Georgian luger Nodar Kumaritashvili in a training run started the games on the sourest of notes.  That Friday I made the gut wrenching mistake of watching the replay of the Olympian’s death; it made me ill.  The real surprise is that all of these lugers don’t die as they race at 140 km an hour on a piece of wood feet first.
The Olympic Committee paid dignified respect to the loss of this athlete.  During the opening ceremonies later in the day, the Georgian athletes all wore black arm bands.  After marching in to the stadium, the Georgians left out of respect (and grieving) for their team mate.  In recent days others have come forth saying that they told officials of the dangers of this track.  Hind sight it 100%; sadly a life was lost before the track was shortened to make it safer.
-Usually I find the opening ceremonies put me to sleep.  Three items in the ceremonies sparked me from boredom to interest.  This was the first Winter opening ceremonies held indoors.  Because they were indoors the committee was able to use technology to create animations such as dolphins which looked real.  The ceremonies showed a respect for the Salish Indians of the region that was not shown 300 years ago when we took their land.  When the Olympic flag was brought in, the who’s who of Canadians were the flag bearers:  Bobby Orr, Anne Murray and Terry Fox’s mother all represented different parts of Canadian society.  The last five torch bearers, Nancy Green, Steve Nash, Rick Hansen, Katrinia Lamay Done and Wayne Gretzky are among the top athletes in Canadian history.
-Cheaters Will Be Punished…later.  One story that annoyed me was that three Russian skiers, who had tested positive for drugs, were at the Olympics.  Their federation would punish them after the Olympics.  Good idea, give them a three year 11 month ban, so they can compete in the next Olympics.
-Watching Canadian Alex Bilodeau win Canada’s first gold medal on Canadian soil was exciting.  I already knew as I watched the re-run that Alex won the gold medal in the moguls, but even in the re-run there was drama.  Beating out 2006 Gold Medalist Dale Begg-Smith (who grew up near Vancouver but skied for Australia) made the win a bit sweeter.  However, the enthusiasm of Bilodeau’s older brother was contagious.  Alex said that his brother, Frederck, who suffers from Cerebral Palsy, was his inspiration.  Frederick had to work so hard to overcome obstacles, Alex gained an appreciation of hard work and perseverance.  (Watching the moguls made my knees and ankles hurt.  How can they go over so many bumps and still keep coming back for more?)
-Our TV was on whenever we were home.  Because of that I saw great figure skating I would never have watched.  The Canadian women made two last shot victories that made me realize how exciting curling can be.
-As week 1 came to an end, I visited with two families who had been in Vancouver for the first few days of the games.  They were suffering from Olympic with drawal… I want to hear their stories, as soon as I get over my jealousy.
Trivia:  Vancouver is the largest and the warmest city to ever host the Winter Olympics.
The Olympics are full of memories no matter how avid a sports fan you are (or aren’t).  Week 2 promises more excitement.  If we thought a shoot out with Switzerland made hockey dramatic, it has only begun as Canada now goes on to play much more difficult opponents. Some of the greatest drama will unfold in sports and for athletes that were not favored…which is why my TV will be on again this coming week.